Tree and shrub diversity in agroforestry homegardens in rural community in Eastern Amazon

Abstract

This article described and analyzed the tree and shrub species composition of homegardens in a rural community in Eastern Amazon, Brazil. Data were collected from 30 homegardens stratified into two groups of 15: homegardens of northeastern and homegardens of peasants from South Brazil, based on floristic surveys of 100% of the tree and shrub components. We studied the floristic composition and the preference value index (PVI), and classified the homegardens by cluster analysis. In the evaluated homegardens, 2270 vegetable plants of 67 species, 53 genera and 28 botanical families were recorded. The most representative families, according to the number of species, were Arecaceae, Rutaceae, Myrtaceae, Annonaceae, and Caesalpiniaceae. Cocos nucifera (coconut) had the highest PVI (97.37), followed by banana, orange, peach palm and avocado, confirming the preference for fruit species with commercial value. The floristic composition of homegardens revealed that coconut is the most commonly cultivated species. The species diversity in the homegardens was moderate, and evenness was considered medium, despite the dominance of species such as banana and açaí palm. The origin of the farmers did not influence the similarity among homegardens, but it influenced vegetal species richness, diversity and density, which were higher in the southerners' homegardens.